What Treasurers for not-for-profits do
Posted on 17th February 2023
TWe know how important Treasurers are to charities and not for profit organisations. We’re involved ourselves and we know how much difference these essential community groups make. It takes a lot to keep things going and it’s often difficult to find someone to take on the role.
As the cost of living increases people are struggling to find money for donations. At the same time, operating costs are going up, making it harder than ever to deliver support and services. That’s why having good financial management for your charity or not for profit organisation has never been more important.
Treasurers look after financial planning and work with the members of the Management Committee. However, they don’t have to do all the work themselves. They can (and should) delegate responsibilities to a finance sub-committee, paid staff or volunteers.
The responsibilities of Treasurers
As well as general financial oversight the Treasurer might also look after wider funding, fundraising and sales. Financial planning, budgeting, and reporting are all essential to make sure objectives are met. This includes controlling and reconciling bank accounts, bookkeeping and other financial record keeping along with proper control of fixed assets, stock, payments, and petty cash.
If you’re a Treasurer you will probably be asked to explain the financial implications of activities, legal requirements, and the current state of finances. To keep everyone informed you will probably need to provide regular reports to the Management Committee.
How Treasurers carry out their role
Every organisation will do things differently. Treasurers’ responsibilities might be shared according to personal skills and interests. Generally, when you’re defining the role of treasurer you should include:
overseeing and presenting budgets, accounts, financial statements and forecasts as needed
working with others and giving advice where finances are involved
setting up and managing appropriate financial systems, controls and reviews
keeping records and accounts that will meet the needs of the management committee, funding bodies and regulators
compliance with legislation including auditing and submitting the accounts.
The Treasurer will need to make sure everyone who handles money on behalf of the organisation follows the right procedures and keeps proper records and documents.
Overall, Treasurers must make sure that effective financial systems and procedures are in place and are used correctly.
Financial delegation
More than one person should be involved in your organisation’s financial management. That’s why both small and large bodies usually set up a Finance Sub-committee while the Management Committee takes overall responsibility.
So, for example, the finance sub-committee might include the Treasurer and two or more members of the Management Committee. The Treasurer might act as chair of the sub-committee.
Annual reporting
The Treasurer is responsible for making sure that the annual accounts are accurately and reliably produced to meet regulatory requirements. This needs to include income and expenditure, assets, depreciation and financial liabilities such as loans. To confirm that the accounts have been properly prepared they should be independently verified. For some larger charities this is a legal requirement.
Copies of the accounts might need to be provided for the Charities Commission, Companies House, donors, funding bodies and HMRC. If your organisation pays Corporation Tax or VAT the Treasurer must file the returns and make payments on time. If your organisation has paid employees the Treasurer must also report and pay the correct National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
We know this is a lot for someone to do on a voluntary basis. With our experience of local not for profit activities we can handle your bookkeeping and create useful reports.
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